CarAdvice attended an early morning breakfast with global Jaguar Land Rover CEO Phil Popham and Australian boss David Blackhall and his team, during which prices for the hugely anticipated Range Rover Evoque were announced to a small press gallery ahead of tomorrow’s opening of the Australian International Motor Show in Melbourne.

Worldwide interest in the Range Rover Evoque has been stratospherically high since the company first showed the vehicle at Kensington Palace just on a year ago. In fact, so anticipated has this all-new addition to the Range Rover family been, that over 300,000 people have registered online for updates on the car.

Phil Popham relates the story of his sales director in the UK who was followed home all the way onto his driveway by a chap who was desperate to have a look inside his Evoque. It’s that kind of obsessive interest in this new Range Rover model that should see global sales go ballistic when it is finally in the showrooms.

Backing up that prediction is the fact that the group has already taken 18,000 deposits on Evoque, which has led Phil Popham to believe that the first six-months of production will be sold out before the cars get to the showrooms.

With prices for the Evoque in Australia kicking off from just $49, 995 through to $77, 395 (and remember the Evoque wears a Range Rover badge) we sincerely hope that Land Rover employees in the UK are ready to work some serious overtime, as we think Evoque will sell like hotcakes across each and everyone of the 174 markets that the Jaguar Land Rover Group operates in these days.

Australia will get all-three design themes (trim levels): Pure, Prestige and Dynamic along with two-wheel drive and four-wheel drive transmissions.

We’ll also get a choice of three engines and both five-door and Coupe body styles and first deliveries of the Evoque will commence from November 2011.

Initially, the four-wheel drive only models will be released in Australia although, the entry level Evoque ‘Pure’ in two-wheel drive will arrive here in early 2012 for those folks who don’t have a requirement for 4WD or like the attractive sub-fifty grand price point.

The engine, transmission, drive and design theme combinations available are as follows:

If you like the look of the Evoque from an exterior perspective, then you’ll be even more enthusiastic when you take a look inside this thing. It’s positively futuristic and probably gives you an idea of what the new generation Range Rover might look like inside, which incidentally, is the next new vehicle that the company intends to launch after Evoque. We’re guessing that should occur late in 2012, but we’ve had no confirmation on timing for that launch.

Like all prestige marques the Range Rover Evoque will be offering several option packs namely, the Dynamic Plus Pack with premium sports interior and one piece sports seats, premium quality leathers and real metal finishes. Also included is two interior colourway themes in Velocity (Ebony) or Agility (Red), which we saw at this year’s New York Motor Show and look positively stunning. Additionally, the seats are heated and are 8/8 way power adjustable.

The entry level ‘Pure’ trim you can order the Tech Pack with the following features:

8" high resolution touchscreen

380 watt Meridian sound system

Audio connectivity system

Customer configurable interior mood lighting

Pure Grained full leather seats

Carpet mat set

18" Style 2 Sparkle Silver Alloy Wheels

For the top shelf Prestige and Dynamic design themes, there is the Tech Pack that offers a raft of additional features around entertainment, connectivity and safety including:

HDD Premium navigation system including 4x4 information

Hard disc drive audio server for 10 CD storage and DVD play

Say what you see voice control

Headlamp power wash

Power Tailgate

Illuminated Treadplates

Loadspace stowage rails

Front Parking Aid

Rear view camera including hitch guidance

Advanced climate control with air filtration, air quality sensor and automatic recirculation

Buyers who want more dynamic handling can also opt for Adaptive Dynamics, which will be available to all SD4 Si4 Prestige and Dynamic models.

CarAdvice will be at the Land Rover stand for tomorrow morning’s press launch of the Australian International Motor Show where the Evoque five-door will be revealed.